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2001 Portrait Arts Festival
Peter Adams, president of the California Art Club, spoke at the awards dinner, which
featured music by Judith Pannill and Steven Raiford. The last day offered critique
sessions, including one led by Carl Samson. Richard Whitney spoke on technique |
David A. Leffel shared his wonderful analogy that "from the very
first stroke you are finished." David's approach to painting is
that it is an intuitive process. Martha Orozco painted a pastel portrait,
to classical music, while we watched the face of an angel appear, an
experience that no one should have missed. This little cutie, when
asked, told her Grandmother that it was okay to put two freckles in
(out of the many on her face). As the grand finale of the seminar, John
Howard Sanden painted the renown Curtis Sliwa, head of the Guardian
Angels. John eloquently shows so much more than just the techniques.
He showed us how to paint a moving target, as his subject's hands
continually moved. He also demonstrated his talent for entertaining his
subject to keep his attention.
There were two roundtable discussions. The first, on Friday evening,
included artists Peter Adams, Allan R. Banks, Steve Childs, David A.
Leffel, Sherrie McGraw, Michele Mitchell, Martha Orozco, Jim Ostlund,
Michael Del Priore, Carl Samson, Frank Tauriello and Richard Whitne. On
Saturday morning, the artists were joined by Elaine Adams of the
California Art Club; Beverly McNeil, President of Portrait Brokers of
America; Jean Daniel, President of Portraits South; LaRue Haigler of
Leon Loard Portraits, Inc.; Sandra Carpenter, Editor in Chief of The
Artist's Magazine; Jennifer King, Editor-USA, International Artist
Magazine; Cynthia Daniel, creator of A Stroke of Genius Internet site;
plus attorney Kimberly Till. John Howard Sanden moderated both these
roundtables. These panel discussions are always so full of needed
information on all subjects ranging from the definition of muddy colors,
edges, final varnishing, tools, mediums, the art market, and so much
more. Beverly McNeil of Portrait Brokers of America gave us the exciting
news that this has been the best year of sales ever in the business of
portraiture. Cynthia Daniel confirmed that the Internet is here to stay.
The experience of seeing the heart of my roommate, Lisa Kovvuri, also on
the board of the West Coast Society of Portrait Artists, growing so full
by the end of the weekend, as she had just experienced her whole world
opening up, was worth a million in gold. I knew she felt as I did after
my first seminar in 1995. The effort to take it all in resulted in
sleepless nights. The art of academic portrait artists cannot be learned
through one source. It is a multitude of many aspects that come from the
past, the present and the future-from developing the intuition to knowing
the techniques, and to never forget the yin and the yang of it, the
marketing. Again we grew, to know more on all levels through the
education that we received on this wonderful weekend in June. We are one
heart that pounds loudly with the American Society of Portrait
Artists. |
